Nancy Gonzalez St. Clair, Alexandra Chang, and Matt Mason

On the 9/6/23 edition of Dr. Andy’s Poetry and Technology Hour:

Lodi Poet Laureate Nancy Gonzalez St. Clair talks to Dr. Andy about her monthly poetry series Mosaic of Voices and balancing community involvement with poetry. She shares two beautiful poems. Author Alexandra Chang joins us to discuss her upcoming reading at the Mary L. Stephens Davis Branch Library and honing her writing skills as a young Davisite, then shares two poems. Nebraska State Poet Matt Mason shares about his new book Rock Stars, including his pension for allusions, then teases its contents with two poems.

Nancy Gonzalez St. Clair is the inaugural poet laureate of Lodi (2023). Her poetry has appeared in Huizache: The Magazine of Latino Literature, La Tolteca, Mujeres De Maiz Zine, Hinchas de Poesía,  Fifth Wednesday Journal, and several other literary journals. Her work is featured in the Poetry of Resistance: Voices for Social Justice, Sacramento Voices: Foam at the Mouth Anthology, Lowriting: Shots, Rides, and Stories from the Chicano Soul, and Puro Chicanx Writers of the 21st Century. Nancy served on the Sacramento Poetry Center Board for several years. She has been a part of the writing group “Los Escritores del Nuevo Sol” since 2011. She hosts a monthly poetry series called “Mosaic of Voices” at the Lodi Library. Nancy has been a public educator for 22 years. She works as a teacher at an elementary school in the Lodi Unified School District.

Alexandra Chang is the author of the novel Days of Distraction and the short story collection Tomb Sweeping. Her writing has appeared in Zoetrope: All-Story, The New York Times, Harper’s Bazaar, Guernica, and elsewhere. She is a National book foundation 5 under 35 honoree who grew up in Davis and currently lives in Ventura County, California. Alexandra will be in conversation with Jamil Jan Kochai at the Mary L. Stephens Davis Branch Library on Thursday, September 7th at 6:30 P.M.

The Nebraska State Poet Matt Mason was Executive Director of the Nebraska Writers Collective from 2009-2022. Through the US State Department, he has run workshops in Botswana, Romania, Nepal, and Belarus. Mason is the recipient of a Pushcart Prize and fellowships from the Academy of American Poets and the Nebraska Arts Council. His work can be found in The New York Times, on NPR’s Morning Edition, in American Life in Poetry, and more. Mason’s 4th book, At the Corner of Fantasy and Main: Disneyland, Midlife and Churros, was released by The Old Mill Press in 2022. His 5th book of poetry, Rock Stars, is fresh out from Button Poetry. Matt is based out of Omaha with his wife, the poet Sarah McKinstry-Brown, and daughters Sophia and Lucia. 

Nancy Gonzalez St. Clair and Linda Collins will read at the Poetry Night Reading Series on September 7th, 2023.

Find out more about Dr. Andy's Poetry Night Reading Series in Davis, California by visiting http://www.poetryindavis.com. Invite your friends to sign up for the mailing list. To learn more about Dr. Andy’s tiny media fiefdom, subscribe to his weekly newsletter at https://andyjones.substack.com.